Not only is Bedford immersed in controversy over a pro-Marxist anti-Christian book assigned in the Personal Finance class, Juniors and Seniors are offered classes from the controversial International Baccalaureate Program (IB) too. It seems you are either for or against IB in Bedford.
One of the biggest problems with IB is, its ability to divide the community. When a school implements a program that is laced with political overtones, it’s sure to ruffle the feathers of taxpayers. That’s exactly what’s happened in Bedford.
IB is in partnership with the education arm of the United Nations: (UNESCO). The U.N. is a controversial organization in its own right. From lobbying for Cap-n-Trade to anti-Americanism, this organization comes with controversial political baggage.
Some residents over the past year have raised concerns over the IB program. Some have taken their message to the local papers others have e-mailed school board members to voice their opposition to an expensive program that many see as a method to politically indoctrinate students.
Bedford residents have been told that IB can be "Bedfortized". The local school has the authority to guide students through the IB course of study. However IB’s own documentation states clearly that the IB program must carry out the IB mission. One needs to dig a little deeper to truly understand the mission of IB and how their mission does not always support the foundation of our U.S. Republic.
Representative Mark Olson presented on the House floor in Minnesota why he believes IB indoctrinates against America instead of educates for America. He references the United Nations Declaration on…
…Human Rights. He notes that in the UNHRD The Universal Declaration of Human Rights Article 29 states: These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations. This is a direct contrast to our individual rights which according to the Declaration of Independence, come from our creator. These are inalienable rights which cannot be abolished by the Government.
According to the IB: http://www.ibo.org/diploma/documents/continuum.pdf In developing an awareness of the diverse values of different cultures, it is, however, fundamental that students in each IBO programme are exposed to those human values which are recognized as universal; these are embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted and proclaimed by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1948. The UNDHR takes the same approach to human rights as the Constitution of Cuba which says that individuals have a right to speech as long as that speech does not conflict with the government of Cuba.
The U.N.’s human rights are considered an entitlement which IB supports in their documentation. U.N.’s version of human rights cannot be exercised contrary to the principles and purposes of the United Nations. Issues like these caused an elected Representative to take his concerns to the Minnesota House floor in an effort to remove IB from the school system in his respective state.
In Upper Saint Clair, PA a similar situation took place. Dr. Trombetta who sat on the School Board raised serious concerns regarding the IB’s endorsement of the Earth Charter. International Baccalaureate/Upper St. Clair School Board Meeting on Feb.13′ 2006 (Fast forward to 1:01:00) For the first hour of the Board meeting you are able to hear the praises of the IB program from various faculty members. However Dr. Trombetta digs deeper. He goes directly to the IB documentation and materials and references IB’s endorsement of the Earth Charter which he identifies as Marxist.
IB did eventually remove their endorsement when schools began to drop the program due to public concerns. However according to Dr. Trometta you will find the Earth Charter’s political message in the program which he identifies in courses like physics as well as on other curriculum materials and tests.
This information has been shared with the Bedford School Board members however the Board has never presented this information to the community. At a recent school board meeting, I raised concerns over the lack of transparency in Bedford regarding IB. When a Congressman addresses concerns on the House floor, this should receive attention. When the IB program continually points to Marxist resources for teachers and students when analyzing issues like global poverty, the community needs to know if the Board supports this agenda in the classroom.
IB in their own documentation on the ethics of global poverty, points to the U.N. and other pro-Maxist sources as good ethical guides for IB teachers and students. My concern over this approach is the shift in education from focusing on academic excellence to "values education". However the question remains, whose values will they be promoting in the classroom? It’s clear in the IB documentation whose values should be promoted.
Individuals like Dr. Peter Singer are listed as a good ethical source when it comes to fighting global poverty. However Dr. Singer has been heavily criticized for his extreme position on infanticide. He has been quoted as supporting the right to kill newborn disabled infants and elevating animals to the same level as human beings on the subject of human rights.
The Board has never discussed these concerns publicly nor has the school administrators. This has left some in the community wondering if there is something to hide or if the school supports this political agenda.
IB has not only generated controversy in Bedford but has run into resistance in other schools throughout the U.S. IB offers documentation to schools on how to handle opposition in the community, indicating this may be a common consequence among schools adopting IB.
We’ve been told that Bedford can "Bedfordtize" the IB curriculum and reflect something different. But what does that mean? Why do we have to pay for an expensive program that we have to change? Why can’t students be offered a challenging course of study without the baggage and cost IB offers?
AP has a long history of providing students with a challenging course of study. AP offers a Scholars Program and an International Diploma and teachers. AP is accepted at most colleges and universities throughout the U.S. and foreign countries.
With budgets being cut, teachers losing their jobs, and less emphasis on academic excellence in the public schools, many in Bedford question the logic in continuing to support this program. Unfortunately the Board seems so heavily invested in defending the program, they’ve lost the ability to look at this program with an independent eye. For instance it took a resident to present the Board with data on how poorly Bedford IB students are performing.
Bedford Diploma Candidates as a group performed below the national average. Many of the IB tests taken last year were not eligible for college credit due to the low scores. Ironically, just before this resident presented her findings, the IB Coordinator presented IB to the School Board and gave it glowing reviews. This has called into question the commitment of the school to present all information on IB.
I hope others reading this article will learn something from the costly experiment in Bedford. There are ways to engage students, bring them challenging courses and do it at a reasonable expense. With IB we have found controversy, added costs that have yielded nothing more we would get out of a good AP program.
